


Persimmons

by Ajisai



Category: xxxHoLic
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-17
Updated: 2012-11-17
Packaged: 2017-11-18 20:39:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/565049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ajisai/pseuds/Ajisai
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How Ame Warashi and Zashiki Warashi might have met.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Persimmons

When she somewhat younger, the Ame Warashi would try to make the roofs of the houses below her collapse. It was a fun game: most of the roofs leaked anyway, and she liked to hear the commotion inside, as she turned up the pressure of the rain, bit by bit. The humans, so far below her, would run around in the fields around their houses, hysterical, cursing each other and the weather as the ill-made roofs caved in and their possessions were ruined.

Then, later, they would leave her sweet bean paste buns as an offering, which she enjoyed. After she’d eaten her fill, she would go to another place and find some other roof to break.

One particular time always stood out to her, though, because it was the last time she ever played that game.

The house she had found, this time, was perfect: old, rickety, beams haphazardly thrown together to make a structure, but only just barely. She cheerfully observed the old man and woman who lived there and made a little bet with herself about how long the house would last—a few minutes at most, she reasoned. Then she started the rain.

There were the usual noises of consternation from inside, and she heard the clanging of pots, to catch the water leaking in. And then the _ping-ping-ping!_ of the water hitting metal, but no more sounds of chaos and fear. The roof showed no sign of breaking, even though it was barely one layer of thatching thick.

Ame Warashi frowned in annoyance, and did the thing the other spirits had warned her not to do: she went down for a closer look.

The house was even more of a mess close up; the walls had several large gaps between boards as well the holes already in the ceiling. Ame Warashi picked her way through the yard, overgrown with weeds and soaked through, past the small vegetable plot, and peered through one of the gaps in the walls.

Inside, the old man and the woman were sitting next to the fire pit, chatting quietly. The leaks in the roof didn’t endanger the main part of the fire, and there was a nice warmth to the one room house that she hadn’t seen from the air. The couple was eating dinner, now oblivious to the rain outside. Ame Warashi shifted her gaze and something caught her eye: another spirit was in the room as well!

The spirit was a lot smaller than she was, but wore a beautiful kimono and radiated… Ame Warashi backed off for a moment, unable to get her thoughts together. The other spirit radiated serenity. Power, and lots of it, but most of all, calm, peaceful serenity. The Ame Warashi had never encountered another spirit like this one and it took her a moment to catch her breath. She wasn’t prepared for the voice that broke through the sound of her rain in the next moment.

“Excuse me, but are you an Ame Warashi?”

Ame Warashi nearly jumped in surprise, but her anger pulled her back down at the last moment. Wheeling on foot, she turned to face the speaker, the other spirit.

“Maybe…perhaps, if you don’t mind, that is… you might ease up on the rain just a little bit?” The other spirit asked her, the calm and serenity diminished as a blush crept across her otherwise white face. Ame Warashi blinked. Where she was from, spirits didn’t ask each other things—they took what they wanted. Unable to formulate a proper response, she snapped, “Who are you, anyway?”

“I’m Zashiki Warashi.”

_That_ , thought Ame Warashi, _explained a lot. No wonder she was in the house with the humans, and no wonder the house hadn’t collapsed in the first place_.

“What did they give you?” She said, feigning disinterest, fiddling with her gloves.

“Give?” The Zashiki Warashi asked, blinking in confusion.

“Yes, give you. To be their Zashiki Warashi, to protect their house!”

“Oh!” The Zashiki Warashi answered, her voice a squeak of embarrassment, “Not much. Sometimes, they leave extra mochi for me. I like that. And persimmons in the fall. Did you see their persimmon tree?”

“Persimmons, huh.”

“They didn’t ask for me by name… I just came. I like it here.” Zashiki Warashi explained, her gaze drifting off towards the house, back to the humans inside. Somehow, her voice was still audible even though it was barely more than a whisper. Ame Warashi was surprised that she had let go of the rain, and now it was only misting, filling the air with tiny drops. Some of them caught on the Zashiki Warashi’s hair, but she made no move to brush them away.

“You like living with humans.” Ame Warashi was almost unable to believe this. It was something she had never even considered; humans were nuisances, and the other spirits said so, acted so. “You know that they’re not giving you the mochi or the persimmons, right? That they’re leaving out extra ones they don’t need?”

“What?” Zashiki Warashi stammered. 

“Humans don't give spirits things. They can't see us! They're total fools who can't see what's around them!”

“I don’t think they’re all… foolish.” The Zashiki Warashi spoke hesitantly, finally moving to brush the water out of her hair, “Some of them… are very kind. I like them.”

Her smile was tentative, hesitant, and absolutely blinding. Ame Warashi found herself taking a step backwards, her head and heart a twist of emotions and giddy joy. Without thinking, she blurted out, “How long are you staying here?”

“Not much longer.” The Zashiki Warashi said, dropping her gaze to the ground beneath her feet, “I can never stay as long as I would like. I get tired rather easily. My guardians will be here soon.”

As if by magic, there was a fluttering in the wind that the Ame Warashi recognized as spiritual, not just a trick of the wind and weather. The Zashiki Warashi was waving up to the sky. “The _Tengu_ are here. I must go back with them. It was nice meeting you, Ame Warashi. And thank you for stopping the rain.” Zashiki Warashi began to fade, her edges blurring in the mist. Ame Warashi suddenly realized she didn’t want to see the other spirit go and before she had properly framed the question, she found herself asking, “Wait, do you need company for the journey back?”

The Zashiki Warashi smiled again, as blinding as before. “Yes, please.”

As she took the Zashiki Warashi’s hand, the Ame Warashi knew she wouldn’t play the game again, that everything she had thought was fun before was about to change. But somehow she didn’t mind and held tight to the small fingers grasped around her own.


End file.
